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There
are a few things in this world I simple cannot resist: If I see a new
food or beverage that's colored blue, I must try it. And last but not
least, if I see a toy on close-out at Target, no matter how stupid it
may seem, I have to buy it because I'm getting this thing for a
steal! Now as you probably already know, I've done quite a few
pieces on I-Mockery involving dinosaurs, most recently the
Amazing Dinosaur Plant, so it's
no secret that I dig those prehistoric lizards big time. In today's
example, not only was the toy on a close-out sale, but it was a
dinosaur-themed toy. Clearly, they had me hook, line and sinker with
this one...
So there
it was, a Dino Magic Volcano Playset for a mere $6.50. Granted,
I had never heard of Dino Magic before, but those damned red close-out
price tags have a way of drawing my eye to products like a magnet. So
not only do I get a plastic volcano playset, but I also get a "magic"
egg with a dinosaur in it? Sold!
So you
fill the volcano with water, drop in the egg and watch it dissolve to
reveal the dinosaur inside. Well that's nothing too new in the world
of toys... I'm sure many of you remember the old
Mad Scientist Monster Lab kit
where you could dip monsters into a solution and watch their flesh
dissolve before your very eyes. While that lab kit definitely seemed
more involved than this one, it didn't come with two things: 1)
the element of surprise and 2) a volcano. So let's move on...
With
most toys of this nature, the one thing the companies want you to do
is "collect them all!" and while the element of not knowing
which dinosaur you're going to get is fun, it also means you'll
probably end up with duplicates if you actually keep buying the
individual magic eggs to complete your collection. I gotta say though,
they've got some great dinosaurs in this set... not just the typical
dinosaurs that everybody's heard of. Pachycephalosaurus, thecodont,
archaeopteryx, ornithomimus, longisquama and other lesser known dinos
are all in the set. Dino Magic also groups its dinosaurs into classes
from common ones to the "ultra
rare" dinosaur bones. Let's see what lady dino luck has
in store for me today, shall we?
I gotta
say, this was a bit of a disappointment. I really like how this thing
looks, just like a bright blue robin egg, but it's just the wrapper
that you have to remove. A bit misleading since they show a big
illustration of one of these colorful eggs in the volcano on the front
of the box. I really didn't want to take the wrapper off of the dino-robin
egg, but I can always buy more of 'em as I'm sure Target will find
more to slap those goddamned red close-out sale tags on.
The
volcano playset is compromised of two parts - the base and the center
mouth area where you place the egg. There are some bones etched into
the plastic base, but nothing too exciting. So you take the two
volcano pieces, lock them into place with a twist and then fill it
with warm water. They do include a mark for the water level so you
don't end up having the volcano erupting all over your carpet... or so
they would have you think.
They
weren't kidding when they said this the egg instantly starts
dissolving when you drop it in the water. Literally 1 second after you
drop it in, you can't even see the egg anymore... just lots of fizzing
foam erupting from the volcano.
Unfortunately, that so-called water fill line appears to be full of
shit because the volcano overflowed with foam. It's not gonna stain
anything, so no problem there, but you should be aware that you're
gonna have to grab some paper towels real quick unless you want your
furniture and/or carpet soaked with dino egg juices. On the plus side,
it is fun to watch the volcano fizzing and bubbling with rage,
probably because you made the gods angry and now they've come to
punish you and your fellow tribesmen by soaking your carpet. Do not
anger the gods!
After
the gods feel you have been sufficiently punished for your insolence,
the foam clears away and you can extract your surprise dinosaur. Hey
look!
I got
the "ultra rare" dinosaur bones! Awesome. Actually, I'd venture to
guess the bones come with most if not all of the volcano sets...
they're only "ultra rare" if you're buying the individual eggs. Now
let's piece the big guy together.
From the
bubbling core of an angry volcano, the mighty Tyrannosaurus Rex stands
once again! Boney T-Rexolicious! But that's not all; the gods have
granted these dino-bones something extra special...
They're
glow-in-the-dark! Actually, I think there's some kind of unwritten law
in the world of toys that if a toy is primarily compromised of bones,
it has to be able to glow-in-the-dark. Hey, who are we to argue?
I had
also purchased another Dino Magic egg, but I wasn't about to make the
same mistake with this one. this time I put the volcano in my sink and
removed the centerpiece because, in all honesty, you don't really need
it. Plus, I can give you a better view of just how quickly the egg
dissolves...
The eggs
actually feel like they're made of the same stuff that those "5-day
fish feeders" are made of for when you're out of town and don't want
to bother somebody with coming over to feed your goldfish. Note:
do not attempt to feed your goldfish with Dino Magic eggs.
Eureka!
The T-Rex bones might be "ultra rare" but in the grand scheme of
things, I'm absolutely certain that it's a lot harder to find a
Archaeopteryx toy than a Tyrannosaurus Rex toy. Archaeopteradical!
And so,
once again, the dinosaurs ruled the earth. Granted, it was just a very
small plastic space on the earth shaped like a volcano... in my
sink... but by god they ruled it with might. DINOmight!
But then
they mated...
And now you know what
really killed off the dinosaurs.
Questions or Comments about this piece?
email -RoG-
If you enjoyed this
piece, be sure to check out:
What The Hell Is The Amazing Dinosaur Plant!?
and
Wacko-Saurs Trading Cards!
and
Dinosaurs Attack! Trading Cards!
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